


Alex and Luke broach a delicate subject with Alex's sister

by alley_oops, jennandanica



Series: Citadel: Luke Evans and Alex Skarsgard [144]
Category: Actor RPF, Citadel (Journalfen RPG), True Blood RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-26
Updated: 2018-03-26
Packaged: 2019-04-08 11:29:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14104416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alley_oops/pseuds/alley_oops, https://archiveofourown.org/users/jennandanica/pseuds/jennandanica





	Alex and Luke broach a delicate subject with Alex's sister

[backdated to Spring, 2014]

"...But so then he was saying, like, you know it's not natural for two human beings to stay with each other in a sexual relationship. And he's talking about, I don't know, clownfish and penguins and things, and about how they mate for life, but how we are not that kind of animal." Emerging from her small kitchen, Elin hands each of them a cold beer and tosses a churchkey onto the coffee table. "I mean, it's not like I was one of these little girls always dreaming of when my prince would come. _You_ know I've never been insistent on getting married," she says, pinning Alex with her gaze as she tucks one leg beneath her and curls up on the chair opposite. "It's never really been a goal of mine. But that was one of the stupidest break-up excuses I have ever heard."

Popping the cap on his beer, Alex snickers softly and hands the churchkey to Luke. Then he regards his little sister with a grin. "Was he already sleeping with someone else, when he told you that?"

"Two," Elin answers with a flash of her blue eyes. "He was already sleeping with two other women."

"What an asshole," Luke says, shaking his head.

"Yes, exactly!" Elin rolls her eyes and takes a healthy swallow of her own beer. "If he told you some shit like that," she asks Luke, gesturing to Alex, "then you would punch him, right?"

"Hey--" Alex pipes up in protest.

"What? I really regret that I didn't punch him!"

Luke laughs. "Yes, I would definitely punch him," he agrees, "but we've already talked about boundaries and what I would and wouldn't put up with."

"Yeah, okay." Elin laughs aloud at him. "I thought that cheating was a... How do you say it. An automatic boundary for most people." She eyes Luke curiously, but then shrugs off the question. "Alex said you had something important to talk to me about."

"Me? Or us?" Luke says, giving Alex a look.

"No, both of you," she replies, even as Alex gives his lover a shrug. "Obviously it's too late for me to be your bridesmaid, so I've been dying of curiosity what you might want. But he sucks and wouldn't even give me a hint," she adds, and gives her brother a gentle kick in the shin.

"Yeah, _that's_ mature. Thanks, El," Alex retorts, frowning as he tries to shift out of her reach. "And I couldn't give you a hint because it's not just me asking. It's Luke, too."

"Just as long as you're not dumping it in my lap," Luke says, snuggling in a little closer to Alex. Although now that they're here, maybe it is better if he starts, given all the kicking going on. "We've been talking about starting a family, preferably via surrogate so we can have a child who's ours biologically. Don't worry though, that's not the part we want to ask you about," he adds quickly, flashing her a smile.

"A... what?" she asks, blinking owlishly. Alex has always been great with kids, sure. But he's never talked to her before about actually wanting one of his own. And with Luke? "You two definitely like to do things the hard way," she mutters.

"Yeah, yeah," Alex mutters back, and snickers. "We love it the hard way." He gives Luke a quick hug around his waist. "You said you never wanted to get pregnant again, after Greger."

"Uh, yes, no," she confirms. "Parasites taking over my body... It was not at all as charming as the books like to tell you. But why?"

"Alex wants me to be the biological father," Luke explains, slowly feeling his way through the possible landmine of a conversation, "and we were hoping you might consider giving us one of your eggs so the child could also be related to him."

Stunned by the request, Elin takes her time to work it through and really think about it. "Why not one of Mom's eggs?"

"Mom's...?" Alex scoffs softly. "Right, so then our child could be its own grandmother. No, thanks." He laces his fingers with Luke's. "We think it could already get confusing enough with Greger being both cousin and half-brother."

"We know it's a big thing we're asking," Luke says, giving Alex's hand a squeeze. "So if you need time to think about it, we understand. It's just that you're our best, well, really our only," he corrects with a small smile, "chance of having a child who's related to both of us."

"Because you're an only child, right. I remember that," she murmurs, sitting back with her beer. She's not really certain yet how to answer; on the one hand it seems like an obvious _yes_ , but then on the other hand she worries that it shouldn't be so obvious, and maybe that means she really isn't aware yet of all the major consequences. "But then, who's going to get pregnant for you?"

"Mmm. That's a separate issue," Alex answers, and brushes his lips over Luke's knuckles. "We're trying to sort out how to find someone who won't give us legal trouble once the baby's born. Internationally, the laws are so different... Like, what are the rules where she lives now, how will those rules change if she moves somewhere else while she's pregnant, do we need to figure out exactly where she'll go when it's time for the baby to be born and...? Yeah. Complicated."

Elin taps her finger against her lips as she watches him, her eyes alight. Legal and obstetrical - obstetrico-legal? - concerns are not the kinds of topics she ever thought to hear her big brother worrying about.

"Hopefully we can find someone who's done this before and isn't just in it for the money," Luke says. "Someone who gets joy out of seeing a couple get a baby who couldn't otherwise. Plus if we both have a genetic stake, it would make our case that much stronger if we did run into issues."

She can't help the smile that spreads over her face. "I think you're both insane," she announces cheerfully, and laughs at the disgruntled expression that fetches her from Alex. "How soon do you want to do this?"

"We... we need to start," Alex answers, still glaring at her in suspicion. "Because we have no idea how long it will take, with all the arrangements and the medical factors and shit. But if I can have my first child before I'm 40, then I want that."

"He doesn't want to be an old dad," Luke explains with a mischievous grin.

Elin just giggles at that. Alex looks so _pissed_ , in that puffed-up and completely harmless way of his. "Is one of you planning to be a stay-home dad? Or will you hire a nanny? Or will you just start taking our mum with you, absolutely everywhere...?"

"No!" It's a knee-jerk response, one that Alex is not proud of.

Luke laughs. He can't help himself. "No on the stay-at-home dad front but we'll probably get a nanny and maybe stagger our projects more."

"Yeah, I don't think we'll spend nearly as much time separated by work," Alex agrees, watching Luke's profile. "I'm not putting up with that anymore."

She grins and studies her hands for a couple seconds, feeling like it's an oddly intimate moment between the two men. Then she, too, looks at Luke. "Have you discussed this with your parents?"

Tears instantly pricking his eyes, Luke blows out a breath and nods. He hadn't wanted to tell Alex's family but now that Elin's asked outright... "They won't be in the picture. They've made the decision to shun me."

Her jaw drops and she stares incredulously, ignoring the outraged glare Alex is shooting her. "You're fucking kidding me. Shunned? Does that mean what I think it does?"

Alex grits his teeth. "Yeah, it does. Thanks, Tact Queen."

"Their church actually pushed them to do it years ago and they didn't but I guess between the marriage and now kids we're just going too far for them," Luke says, having moved past anger to resignation.

Now Alex puts both arms around his husband, pulling Luke to snuggle up against him. And he glares at Elin in warning again. "That shit is not happening with our family."

"Fuck, no," she agrees, a bit surprised that Alex felt it needed to be said. "We all really love you, Luke, and we're so happy that you're with Alex. If you have a child and then move within fifty kilometers of Stockholm, you're never going to see that kid again, except for maybe on weekends. Does that make sense?"

Luke nods and laughs a little, pressing in closer to Alex. "Could you do me a favour and not tell anyone else?" he says softly to Elin. "About my parents, I mean. I just don't... I don't want it to overshadow our visit and I really don't want to talk about it anymore than I have to." Not when being with Alex's family is usually such a joyful thing.

Elin gives him a dubious look that could cross any language barrier. "You... don't want me to tell anyone that you're unhappy with your parents and that they're turning their backs on you?" A beat of silence, to make sure everyone in the room caught just how preposterous that suggestion is. She shrugs one shoulder and gives Luke a smile. "Sure, sweetie. I promise the news flash won't come from me." She gets up and stands next to them, and scolds her brother, "Alex, _let go_ of him. God, you're like a fucking Amazon python or something, and I need a real hug."

Luke rises to his feet and wraps his arms around her, the tears doing more than just stinging his eyes now. "I will tell everyone," he promises. "I just don't want to tell them while we're here."

"All right." She hugs him tightly, her own tears brimming for a handful of very different reasons: she thinks the guys may have changed her life here today far more than they think they have. "Our mother is dying to see you," she says, releasing Luke. "So is everyone, but my mom especially."

Luke's mood changes just like that. Mostly. "She's going to show me more recipes," he says, smiling at them both.

"That's because she thinks you pick up where she stopped," Elin explains with a teasing grin at Alex. "You take her baby boy and make sure he is spoiled rotten as usual."

"He spoils me right back," Luke says, smiling up at his husband. "Just in his own way."


End file.
